<p>My daughter applied RD to Bates. What is the alcohol scene like there? She does not drink. Will there be enough kids like her at Bates, so that she would be comfortable there? Its a small school - what % drink?</p>
<p>All I can tell you is DD went to Bowdoin and Bates on recruiting trips and the alcohol flowed freely at both. This was the main reason she crossed both off her list - the schools are very small (1/3 to 1/2 size of her HS) and isolated (Bates an island in the middle of an economically distressed city, Bowdoin is located in a forested area), making drinking a very widespread activity. </p>
<p>OTOH, there are a lot of non-varsity, intramural sports to get involved in, and other school-related clubs and activities. Both have nice athletic facilities for students. Both do a great job of bringing “name” bands to campus and both offer first-run movies each week. Both are top notch schools where students spend a good deal of their time studying.</p>
<p>D attends Bates - secon year and loves it. She started as a totally non-drinker but now will have 1 or 2 during the course of a night. She says she has never drank enough to be sick or even drunk. Smart kid :)</p>
<p>My understanding is that there is a lot of drinking on the weekends. Not so much during the week. D didn’t start drinking until well into her freshman year and she loved it regardless and didn’t feel out of place with her friends.</p>
<p>I never drank at while attending Bates (recent grad) and felt very comfortable in the environment…drinking is definitely a part of the culture, as it is at most schools, but there are lots of students interested in doing other things and plenty of ways to spend your weekends without alcohol…</p>
<p>i never drank while attending*</p>
<p>Actually, Bowdoin is not in a forested area, it is adjacent to a decent sized town.</p>
<p>Just back from Brunswick-it is a cute little town, lots of restaurants, some interesting ones, bookstore, chains within 2 miles(Cook’s Corner) and a nice bikeway along the river. We really liked it-seems to have more than Williamstown in terms of restaurants and shopping.
Bates is fab, of course, but Lewistown is even more depressed than when I was there. This does leave lots of community service options, and may be why Bates is one of the top ten “schools for socially conscious”
I didn’t drink much, eons ago, and there is always plenty to do-no frats and lots of other activities…</p>
<p>My son is a junior and said there seems to be more drinking this year than previous years. Said he’s tired of the beer bottles and vomit.</p>